The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1887-11-05
The Giant Elk.

A Fort Keogh (Iontana) letter to the
New York Times says: The destruction
of large game in the Northwest of late
years has been something appalling to con-
en- beneath the deadly rifles of the pot hun
tiers within the past decade will, Of course,
never be known, but Montana has furnish
ed her quota, and the number cannot be far
from the tens of thousands.
In this latitude elk grow to an enormous
size. We have principally two species, the
ordinary brown elk, who inhabits the low
lands and the foot hills of the mountains,
and the monster blue elk of the Rockies,
who ranges high, usually feed on the shrubs
and berries that grow near the borders of
the timber line, and seldom descending
from the perpetual snow district unless
forced by the scant vegetation to seek sus-
tenance below.
The Yellowstone National Park is about
the only haven of safety left for these noble
game animals to seek, and they seem to un-
derstand it, too, for, either by instinct or
reason, they have been drifting over into
the park during the last two or three years,
until now all the large bands in the North
west, with the exception of those in the
Big Horn Range, are safely sheltered
within our great National reservation.
Mountain elk when full grown are gen
orally monstrons in size, averaging all the
way from eight hundred to fifteen hundred
pounds. The headgear of these animals is
enormous, some of them weigh forty, fifty
and even sixty pounds, and all handsomely
mounted on graceful head about the size
of that of horse. The legs are long and
neck short, for which reason, as a rule, it
browses on plants, tree leaves, berries and
shrubs growing high, and when shrubs or
close growing grasses are not to be reached
the beast either grazes along the steep hill
sides or else drops on his fore knees to crop
the succulent grasses. One elk killed by
the writer some time since measured twen-
ty-six inches length of face spread of horns,
forty. five inches; from brow to top Of ant
lers, fifty-four inches had twelve tines, or
branches, the latter being handsomely and
most beautifully incased in a soft velvety
covering very much like moss.
When traversing forest the big bulls
carry their antlers almost fat back on the
shoulders, and can penetrate with the ut
most ease and facility the densest thickets
or masses CT brush where man or any other
animal would get hopelessly entangled.
They possess the art to perfection Of pro-
ceeding through the woods with the ut
most stealthipess, stepping here and there
without as much as even touching a twig,
and evading or softly touching the leaves
like the rustling of gentle breeze.
In the summer and fall these animals
congregate in herds, but as the winter
creeps on, unless in narrow and confined
district, each family branches out for it.
self, and wanders where it will until April
or May, when the young are born, at
which time the mother takes itself off
with her fawns, and will have nothing to
do with the father of her family until
October or November, when the rutting
seasons again begins. One reason why We
have so few elk in comparison to other large
game animals is that the female, in the
course of her life, seldom bears more than
two fawns, and this only once in about every
three years. During the rutting season
the males become perfectly frantic, and are
nearly as dangerous to approach as grizzlies.
Their antlers and hoofs are their weapons
of offense and defense. With the latter
some of them have kept a whole pack Of
wolves at bay, trampling the life outof scores
of the big gray timber customer who habitu-
ally hang around the elk yards like so
Il. eoal.1or 70 davo,,,- the
newborn young.
An elk yard is clearing in the timber
wherein the snow has been trampled down,
and contains sometimes one family, and
again as many as fifty or more. These
Yards are selected with great dead of sa-
gacity, so as to be free from winds and
storms, well sheltered from the weather,
and also arranged to stand off the attacks
of grizzly and silver-tip bears and noun
tain lions. With their tremendous horns
they carry on most Of their offensive war
fare, but these are used principally against
their own kind or against animals of cor
responding size. When two bull elks
come together ike pair of billy goats the
conclusion Of the Blow can be heard almost
a mile.
This belligerent spirit possesses them
during the rutting season, at which time
no bull elk can see another without com
ing to blows. They first set up terrible
believing, then lower their heads and rush
at each other on the same track. Crack
Something Is broken or smashed, and there
they stand pushing and pushing until one
or fhe other hacks down when his opUo-
nent either cores or tramples him to death.
Not unfrequently their huge antlers become
interminably locked. Then, when the
fight wanes, or one or the other is worn
out, one or both dropSto the ground, or one
drags the other down, and both lie dogn
to die Of starvation or be devoured by
wolves.
-x--->-s-
Industry has annexed thereto the fairest
fruits and the richest rewards.
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